Knife in my Side
by FuzzyBee013
Summary: My take on the ending and following it up right after all the events happen and before the epilogue. I also had Szpirglas use the knife he brought along because I don't remember him using it at all.


**Disclaimer**- I do not own the book airborne

Matt Cruse was standing on top of the airship Aurora. The wind was in his face blowing the beads of sweat that had gathered off of his face. He didn't seem to notice the height he was at he was to terrified to notice and dint mind heights in the least bit.

Matt was waiting to see if the pirate Szpirglas would make his reappearance. It was a life threatening experience and the ship was in danger. Matt could feel the ship moving beneath his feet. It seemed that the pirate had changed the course preparing it for landing upon the small crescent shaped island.

A movement behind him caused Matt to turn around. It wasn't what he had expected it was the cloud cat. How it got there he didn't know it looked serene though, like something out of a picture book. How could something so agile and beautiful be so aggressive and harmful? It was the way of animals to be deceitful of their prey.

Matt watched it there for a few seconds wondering what it was going to do. It was the first time since it had been in the air since it was dropped from birth and was bound to the land. He hoped it would stay there for now until this crisis was over.

Another motion caught his eye this time he knew who it was. Szpirglas. This time though he had a knife in his hand glinting in the sunlight. Matt was completely unarmed and wouldn't stand a chance but he had to go for it the whole of Aurora was deepening on him and he had to make sure she was unharmed or not harmed any more then she was already.

"Come on boy you have nowhere else to run. You're a clever one and you should see there is no way out now," Szpirglas said. Matt didn't respond he was trying to conjure up a plan but came up blank.

"If you hadn't been so loyal and been messing up my plans I would have tried to recruit you but here we are and that's not an option. How did you get out of the hydrium pit anyways?"

"I flew," Matt responded still thinking as hard as he possible but in high stress situations sometimes you came up blank.

"Well then let's see you fly again." and with that Szpirglas came running up to Matt and before he could defend himself the dagger was already in his flesh and he was falling backwards.

He was lighter than air, Matt Cruse was or that's what everyone told him and he believed it. He could do anything when he was in the air. It was his home and he was being welcomed into an even bigger one. Matt would see his father again and they would meet in the same way by falling. They could finally fly together like in all of Matt's dreams. Something wasn't right though. There was a pain in his side and every time this moment had been imagined he was weightless and felt nothing but this was different. Why did he hurt so badly?

He slowly came back to reality and remembered his obligations. The Aurora! If he didn't stay alive then she would crash into the island and there would be no hope for anyone. He needed to stay alive. Matt observed his surroundings. He was still flying alongside the Aurora and would steer clear of her and into the water. He then saw the gap between the elevator flaps and fin and angled himself toward it.

He wasn't sure if he would make it but all he could do was hope at a time like this. He hated Szpirglas for putting him in this situation for doing everything to him. Why did they have to board the Aurora and then end up shipwrecking her on his own stinking island? It was his entire fault and now Matt had to be the one to clean it all up. He needed to end this and the only way to do that was to stay alive and kill Szpirglas no matter how much he hated the idea of killing a man he couldn't think of any other way.

As he angled himself toward the gap he hoped for the best. He put his arms out and meant to catch himself that way hoping he had the strength to do so. It got closer and closer and then...

He felt a jarring pain in his arms and thought his shoulders were about to pop out of their sockets. He hadn't landed exactly right his left leg had hit the fin before his arms and he wasn't sure how banged up his was but he could think about that right. Right now his arms were on fire and he was barely hanging on by the finger tips.

Matt saw Szpirglas looking at him from above.

"_Please just leave me for dead I'm as good as anyways. Why can't he just leave the Aurora alone he's done enough damage already," _Matt thought but he knew it wasn't true if anything it was biggest lie he had ever thought. Szpirglas wouldn't end here he would kill everyone on the ship to protect his island and Matt was the only chance to stop it and he wasn't in the best situation to do anything right now.

As he was dangling there his thoughts drifted to the cloud cat who he realized that come out of the crow's nest and was looking out into the sky. Matt looked at it and thought it was the most beautiful thing in the world if only Kate could see it now she would think the same thing. His life was hanging by his fingertips and this cloud cat would be the last good thing he would see and he wanted to make the most of it. The cloud cat seemed to be hesitant and then it dropped into the air expanding its wings except one didn't quite unfold all the way but it unfolded enough so that after a few flaps it was flying! It was flying after all this time! If there was still hope for that cloud cat who had been crippled its whole life and could now fly then there was hope for Matt too.

With newfound strength he tried to pull himself up but before he had a chance to Szpirglas started climbing down. Matt silently cursed to himself he was hoping that the pirate would just leave him for dead. Szpirglas made it down quickly to where Matt was at and started kicking at his hands.

"Come on boy let go! You don't need to make this harder than it is. Do you want me to break all of you?"

"You will never break all of me!" and then with Matt's newfound strength he kicked Szpirglas with his right leg causing him to lose his balance and stumble. Before he fell over the edge and seemed doomed Matt reached out a hand but the cloud cat came and ripped at his neck and that was the end of Szpirglas.

Matt couldn't really believe what had just happened at the last moment there he had tried to save Szpirglas even after all that he did but that wasn't the kind of person that Matt was he wanted to be like the hero in Gilgamesh but he was to late like those who tried to save his father were too late.

He lay there panting his face pressed against the cool steal soothing him trying to forget everything and just let the sky take him away. HIs thoughts were jumbled and he was done worrying. He had done his duty. He had gotten the Aurora back and gotten rid of Szpirglas. But wait the Aurora! She was still on a crash course for the island. Matt somehow had to get to the control room and save his home, the Aurora, once again.

His newfound strength still lingered in his body and he somehow made it up to the top of the massive ship. He didn't remember much of what transpired during the climb he just knew he was close to falling a few times what with his crushed fingers and his damaged leg but he made it up there either way.

Matt Cruse slide down the ladders and ran as best he could or more like limped a little fast all the way to the control room not stopping a beat. The only thing running threw his head was to save the ship! To save the Aurora!

The ship passed by as a blur and Matt could recount no memories of this mad dash to the control room. He entered and went immediately to the controls. He finally had a chance to catch his breath and then the fear and panic finally stole over him.

"_Come on think Matt. You've seen this done a hundred times. What would the captain tell you to do?"_ He then went to the controls and knew exactly what to do with the captain's help inside his head and from his memory. The ship kept rising and turning and rising and turning until Matt was sure she had cleared the top of the volcano and the Aurora was no longer in danger.

He had done it! He had saved the Aurora and he hopefully wouldn't have to do it again. He heard the captain's voice again in his head and started her on its course but then realized that the voice wasn't inside his head. He turned slowly around and found Captain Walken standing there with the rest of the crew and Kate. Matt couldn't have imagined a better sight.

"Sir! She needed bringing up and seeing as no one was here to do it I took it upon myself," Matt explained.

"Yes I see that MR. Cruse. Miss de Vries has told us everything."

"Yes sir!"

"Now straighten her out now. Very good you were born to this Mr. Cruse. You were born to fly." They all stood there looking at Matt finally get to fly a ship a thing he had only dreamed of. It seemed like hours then mere minutes until a wave of exhaustion swept over Matt. After all that had happened the pirates attacking, being shipwrecked, and then being on land for a few days, where he never slept well, and not to mention being injured it all now came back to him and Matt felt a tiredness he had never felt before not even that night he had rescued Kate's grandfather.

"Sir, permission to hand the wheel back over!"

"Of course Mr. Cruse you've done enough already you must be tired," the captain replied. Matt started to walk over but his legs felt like dead weights and he remembered now how bad his left leg hurt and he stumbled along. He had nearly gone a few feet before he slowly slumped down into darkness. The last thing he heard were a few shouts of Mr. Cruse and Matt as he fell into a deep sleep that was Longley awaited.

**Authors Note**- I hope you guys enjoyed this. I saw that there were like no Airborn fanfics and was appalled so I put it upon myself to make one. I'm not sure if I got Matt exactly right but I tried my best and hoped you guys like it. Anyways please review so I can get some feedback


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